TripRank Speed-Rewarding App Withdrawn After Belgium Row

The developer of TripRank, a driving analysis app that rewarded users with points for higher speeds, has withdrawn the application from the market following a wave of criticism from Belgian authorities and road safety organizations. The app, which had been downloaded approximately 250,000 times worldwide, sparked a national controversy after Het Laatste Nieuws reported that the faster a driver went, the more points they earned in the app’s virtual ranking system.

How the App Worked

TripRank, developed by Serbian developer Uros Mijajlovic and launched in early 2026, used smartphone GPS to record routes, distances, driving style, and average and maximum speeds. In its free version, the app displayed driving statistics only to the user. The paid version (€6 per month or €35 per year) allowed users to compete in a global leaderboard with all other users.

According to RTBF, reaching 250 km/h on a highway earned a “very good score” displayed on the user’s profile. The app also reportedly paid drivers €0.50 per 1,000 views for videos of their driving, up to a maximum of €434 per video, creating a financial incentive for dangerous behavior.

The app gained significant traction through an €80,000 marketing campaign targeting social media platforms like TikTok and Instagram with the hashtag #TripRank. VRT NWS reported that over 9,000 users in Belgium had downloaded the app.

Belgian Authorities Respond

The Belgian federal government launched an investigation into whether to ban TripRank, with the cabinet of Federal Mobility Minister Jean-Luc Crucke (Les Engagés) working with the Ministry of Justice. “We are aware of the existence of this app and are further examining the situation with the relevant partners and involved actors, including the justice system,” Crucke told Het Laatste Nieuws. “Promoting inappropriate or excessive speeding is absolutely undesirable and contradicts our efforts towards road safety.”

VIAS, the Belgian Road Safety Institute, and the Federal Police both publicly warned against the app. “How can one encourage people to make trips in the fastest possible way? The road is neither a race track nor a playground,” said Benoît Godard, spokesperson for VIAS. “Every year in Belgium, 450 people are killed on our roads and 45,000 are injured.”

Régis Kalut, spokesperson for the Federal Police, warned that the app “creates a community of people who will record, compare, and disseminate data that reflects dangerous behavior, therefore significant traffic offenses. This can push young people or impressionable individuals to commit offenses to identify with this community. It is very dangerous.”

Legal Consequences of Speeding

Ann Berger, another Federal Police spokesperson, emphasized the legal consequences drivers could face. “If you drive too fast, more than 40 kilometers per hour over the speed limit on the highway, very heavy penalties hang over your head here in Belgium,” she warned. “You will definitely appear before the police court, you can get a fine of up to several thousand euros, and you can get a driving ban of 8 days to 5 years.”

Developer’s Response

Following the controversy, Mijajlovic acknowledged “communication errors” and withdrew the app from the market pending a major redesign. In a written statement to RTBF, he said: “We do not endorse street racing. In reality, if you download the app, you will see that there is no top speed ranking. The only rankings present concern total distance, distance per trip, and trophies. However, we mentioned a ‘top speed ranking’ in our marketing communication, even though the app didn’t offer one. We are sincerely sorry and completely disapprove of such practices.”

The TripRank website has since been updated to emphasize that leaderboards rank distance, longest single drive, territory explored, and trophies — explicitly stating that speed is not ranked. The site now claims 600K+ drivers and a 4.9-star rating.

Broader Context

This is not the first time Belgium has investigated driving-related apps. In December 2025, the federal government launched an investigation into Trapspotter, an app that aggregated police checkpoints using AI. Minister Crucke raised “serious ethical and legal questions” about that app as well.

What’s Next

The Belgian government’s investigation into TripRank remains ongoing, and it is unclear whether the app will be banned in Belgium even after its redesign. The developer has stated the app will remain “completely unavailable” until a major redesign aimed at encouraging driving that respects speed limits is completed. Road safety experts and authorities will be watching closely to see whether the redesigned version addresses their concerns or whether further regulatory action is needed.